# #-1 owned a verb!

Don Schwarz (darkowl@darkowl.pr.mcs.net)
Fri, 22 Mar 1996 10:01:45 PST

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    On Fri, 22 Mar 1996, Seth I. Rich wrote:

    > So I was hacking on NewbieMOO (newbies.opal.org 8888), trying to compile
    > a complete list of patches to make a LambdaCore database compatible with
    > server release 1.8 (we're running 1.8.0p2, with the newest patch also
    > installed).
    >
    > I have no clue how it happened, but we ended up with a verb owned by #-1.
    > I tried to reproduce the problem:
    >  - Hard-recycling a verb owner does not change the verb's ownership.
    >  - Renumbering a verb (property, object) owner does appear successfully
    >    to change ownership of the verb (property, object).
    >  - add_verb, even when called by a wizard, will not permit a verb to be
    >    owned by #-1
    >  - set_verb_info, even when called by a wizard, will not permit a verb
    >    to be owned by #-1.
    >
    > So I couldn't reproduce how this verb came to be owned by #-1.  But there
    > it was:
    >   ;verb_code($wiz, "@copyobject")
    >   => {#-1, "rd", "@copyo*bject}
    > (Yes, I know @copyobject isn't in the Core.)
    >
    The same thing happened on ForestMOO when #2 was hard recycled and I had to
    fix it (I didn't have server access).  Once I realized what had happened, I
    figured I'd just have to renumber(create($wiz)) to get #2 back, and then set
    it's player, programmer, and wizard bits, but this didn't seem to help all
    the tracebacks.  I eventually figured out the problem was because all of the
    verbs been chowned to #-1.  I'm not sure exactly how this happened, or if
    it happened to the properties (I fixed them along with the verbs, but I
    don't check if any of them were actually screwed up), but I didn't think
    much of it at the time.  Maybe it only happens when things with their player
    bit still set are recycled?
    (and no, I won't mention how #2 was recycled, but it wasn't my fault ;)

                                                                    --Dark_Owl